Offroad-Express

well....that hill didn't let me go the way i wanted...ooops

pretty isn't it?

soon to be on her paws again....no broken glass!

carnage...its not so bad...

after...good fun @ the wall in the claypit

"u ain't diggin unless somethin bends or breaks"

i dont know how to start a pic portfolio so here r some more pics
the toilet...

Great trip pics... so how long till you're out here and where abouts are you going when you arrive?

Steve

i'll be there on the 25....1 week today i guess...landing in auckland....
made a connect on the far north so i'm going to hed there first...get in some good surf on the west.......think im going to hoof it 4 a while so if u see a 6'4" canadian hitchin...it could be me
woohoo!

can u see how loose my driveshaft....it was hangin on by 2 bolts when i got home...

well....i've been in auckland 4 a week or so....they people seem 2 be quite nice....waiheke is my first destination...got an offer to do some woofing there....just goin w/ the flow u know.......jungle if ur still out there, i would like 2 get in contact with u....either through the website or on the horn.....piha is the most beautiful beach i have ever been 2, surf was about 1-3m.....i'll hit this thread more than once in my travels.

If you get down to Christchurch give me a shout on 021 637 600... I'll buy you a beer and take you 4WDing if its done by then...

Steve

I hope your mu will be done by then

what's mu??.....will definately take u up on that steve.....im still on waiheke at this moment....but will be in thge south 4 the end of summer
lookin 4ward to get some good diggin in...im hopein to find a nice cheap sami by then...and maybe a garage 2 give the rig a spring over....is jungle out there...does any1 know how i can get in touch w/ him??
until next time .......play hard, get muddy, and find some rippin ' rock trails 2 show me......my mistake...

Whats the MU? Good question... at the moment a odd-shade-of-green-pile-of-spare-parts...

Think Isuzu Amigo with Toyota SAS. Have a look at my pic to the left... or search the Forums for Isuzu MU solid axle swap...

Before:


After:

Ooooooh yeeeah

those 36inch cv snappers look mean as man

Cmmon EF, if you look closely they are just 35's

They have the double line of center lugs, the 36's have the tripple line

Ok, I'm Ghey

ha yes db im the wanker of the week


yes i c the double row now

the funny thing is i own 36s big stupid half tonne things they are,my next set will be 35/10.5 like steves i found they cleared better in the thick stuff than the 36s and i broke less ,and i didnt have to take a week off work after changing the heavy huas

well spoted pete

i actually enjoy changing my 36" simex's makes me feel cool and its a great workout....

Haha EF, yeah I tricked you 'cos I've been talking about my 36's for a while now... This was taken back when I only had piddly wee 35's.

They have been sold and gone, and I've got 36's sitting ready to bolt up when I get the axle reconnected to the important bits.

I'd heard the 36's don't work as well in mucky stuff, not too stressed about it tho as I've also heard they are muuuuch nicer on the road, and I'm waaaay too lazy to change tyres after a 4WD trip Besides, I'm more likely to be on sand or river shingle than mud...


Steve

ha you did indeed steve

my 36s are horrible on the road.....................simexs should be balanced at 30 psi weve found ,if you get lazy and say leave them at 20psi they shake wander the list goes on ..........................and i found that the lighter mass of yhe 35s made so much difference on the road

and as for sand and beach driving they do nothing but dig holes and swallow horse power i use the bald coopers for the beach and the work a treat

but thats my opinion ,which dosent mean jack

and dont even get me started on boggers :flakwhore:

nice rig steve...is it done? we dont have amigos in canada....i,m really lookin forward to seeing what that thing can do.
found my way into a safari....nissan i think...cool units, buddy seemed to know what he was talking about/doing. dont think id invest in one...quite frankly i dont think i would ever buy anything but a zuk...maybe a powerplant with a little more power.....as 4 tires...we dont have the simexs that u guys are talking about....and i have never driven anything bigger than 33s.....also, i drive everywhere on 20psi in the zuk,no wanderin,snakin,or anything...if anything it gives me more suspension....
and take into consideration that my rear end is perm. welded, and it rains 8 months out of the year in BC...where im from anyway.....l8r

I've been pretty dissapointed by the Safari I've been working on that a mate just bought. Lifted it bugger all and it shakes itself to bits... the front just won't articulate at all, and the back articulates all over the place... its just not a capable truck for the types of driving I like to do - keeps lifting wheels and spinning, with no cheap solution in sight.

Still, he sold his 70 cruiser to buy it - madman!

'Zuks are pretty awesome little trucks, and I've often wished I'd spent more time working on them so I knew them a little better - but most of my time has gone into Toyotas and Isuzus. Theres a competition Jimny being done http://www.project-tinfoil.co.nz/ which is looking very good. Might do something with one as a project later down the track... I keep looking at that disco coilsprung chassis I just advertised and thinking what I could do with that

Anyway, my MU is 98% done, and a few days clear work from being finished, but I'm also renovating, selling our house, building a new house, finishing Matts LT1 Chev powered 60-series, working near full time at Polytech, and a few other things I have to get done before I die I should have it done sometime soon, and I have a few trails to blaze this christmas, so it WILL be done... I hope

Steve

Excuses excuses, I dont know...

hi steve what sort of powerplant will you use for those 36s

SupraLux wrote:I've been pretty dissapointed by the Safari I've been working on that a mate just bought. Lifted it bugger all and it shakes itself to bits... the front just won't articulate at all, and the back articulates all over the place... its just not a capable truck for the types of driving I like to do - keeps lifting wheels and spinning, with no cheap solution in sight.

Still, he sold his 70 cruiser to buy it - madman!

Steve

Post ya problems in the Nissan section and i'll see what i can dig out for ya steve.

Those problems you metioned there are very common and there are a number or cheap fixes available that i am aware of.
In fact, i'll answer you in the topic you started on it ok.

DB, thanks for that... would appreciate it.

EF, I'm using the mighty and all-powerful 3.1TD until it poos itself (I'm picking sometime next week ) then I'll throw a V6 commy in it with a lux box and twin T/Cs. I've got it geared down using 4.88 diffs to hopefully its drive ok for now - I'm running the budget on empty at the mo due to house renovations so theres no cash for V6 conversions - I'll just have to blow it up the old fasioned way to prove to the wife its gotta be done

Steve

the easiest way to kill it is called FREE BOOST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

good stuff steve those 3.8s haul for a six mate and twin trannys hmmmmmmmmmmm,nice

sounds killer...will that be done 4 when i hit the south island???
question.....if it has a TD init doesn't that engine produce a sh+tload of torque, and why then would u want to replace w/ a higher hosrepower gas powerplant???and isnt the TD a hell of alot cheaper on fuel as well?? I say scrap the swap and rebuild the TD...put a bigger turbo...and possibly a jakebrake...sweet as for the downhill when ur brakes r soaked.... :bluecap:

Yeah, the 3.1TD motor is a good little powerhouse, and easily modified to produce around 15-20% more ponies with a bigger exhaust, fuel pump tweak and EGR blockoff.

The problem is the reliability - they are a hand grenade and Isuzu (GM) pull the pin just before they roll off the assembly line... They all have different length fuses and so its a bit like russian roulette as to when it goes pop.

Mines seeming pretty good, but the turbo has a nasty whine and they're not rebuildable apparently.

The 3.8 litre V6 is a time-proven torquey and grunty donk that drinks like a dusty 4WDer at the end of a long dry trail But it goes well and is reliable as hell. Also, its really compact so fits the tiny MU engine bay. And you can sell a 3.1TD motor for about the same as you can buy a whole VP Commodore car with one of those donks in it.

I'm not too worried about fuel consumption - if it gets too bad I'll LPG (Propane) convert it - but its mainly for offroad use so the thing I want is to be able to spin up and clear mud from the 36" feet

Steve

whats involved with an lpg conversion? its it expensive to swap over?

Its about $2500 if you drop it into a shop. You are not legally allowed to do the full install yourself, and there are some funny regs on installing LPG so discuss it with a certified LPG installer before doing anything.

The one thing I know you are NOT allowed to do is run the fuel lines.

Thats probably not much help, but its about all I know

Steve

does any1 know any good digs in the northland??? all i can find is sand.....what a load...its fun 4 the first 20 min or so....all the good stuff must be south?? :globwhore: ..."call me a rock whore if u must" ....some1 out there...i will buy the brews if u show me a decent dig....really cant wait to get down south to go out 4 a good 1 boys....have yet to find a decent sami.....u know they were only 10k(cdn) new....that means that a stocker is not worth 4500 (pre 91)...that's almost 15 years old u know...there has 2 be some sort of amortization in a country full of jap cars......lookin 2 spend bout 1k on a stocker.....if any1 has seen 1...they must be out there...xtra 4 a decent lift n tires :scratch:

Haha.. welcome to New Zealand... home of the overpriced car and WAY overpriced 4WD. Might have to convert you to Hiluxes - you'll get more for your money here that way... although $1k is not going to get you a lot I don't think... you might end up in an old LJ80 or something similar.

I'm biased, but 4WDing anywhere else but down here in the South is just not worth it Auckland has a couple of tracks - and you'll probably need to hook up with some keep 4Wheelers up there to find them... Down here I live within 15 minutes drive of 3 major rivers and a couple of good minor ones as well... all of which end up in very rocky gorges if you drive far enough, or in the sea if you go the wrong way Theres mud, theres deep water, theres shallow water, theres sand, theres beaches, theres riverbeds, theres rocks, theres clay roads... you name it - we got it.

When are you due down here again? I'm hoping to get the MU back mobile next week (how many times must I keep saying that )

Steve